No Apple Fritters but Parmesan Spinach Cakes

This was a challenging day. First of all, the temperature was again -20˚F at 7:15 this morning for the fourth day in a row. Not even the dogs wanted to be outside to do their business. Then, after dropping the kids off at school, I swung by the old Donut Hut for the second time this week in search of apple fritters. Because of the deep freeze we're in, I've had a hankering all week for apple fritters, and all I needed were six fritters, four for our family and two for the folks next doors. I got there at 7:38 a.m. and they were already sold out. Big bummer.

At 10 a.m. I had an appointment at the chiropractor and as I backed out of the driveway, my car slid on the ice and knocked over the trash can. Trash hadn't been picked up, yet, and so the can fell over and spilled half of its contents onto the road. Under pressure to get to my appointment on time, I now faced trash on the street. I put on my hat and mittens and started collecting our trash from the icy road… Suffice it to say that I was very frustrated and, unfortunately, in a fit of anger, kicked the garbage can, which made my right toe hurt really bad… I'm sure I made myself the spectacle of the day for the neighbors across the street.

After the chiropractor, things started getting better, though. Caro, whose mother is my cousin, came for tea around noon, and I decided that we needed a little more sustenance than just tea. So I prepared a dish I've been wanting to try for a while: spinach cakes. I found the recipe in Eating Well magazine and thought it might make a really nice little lunch for the girls to take to school some day. Today was the trial run. Caro and I both loved it, and so did my husband who stole a bite or two from my plate, and the only variation one might want to try is to prepare this dish and pour it into a crust, kind of like quiche. (This is Caro's idea.) I like it without crust, however, and think it's a bit healthier that way, too. Here's the recipe from Eating Well, October 2008 issue:

Parmesan Spinach Cakes:

12 ounces fresh spinach

1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese or low-fat cottage cheese

1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan ( I used Romano which is a little more pungent)

2 large eggs, beaten

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Pulse spinach in three batches in a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add ricotta (or cottage cheese), Parmesan, eggs, garlic, salt and pepper; stir to combine.

Coat 8 cups of a muffin pan with cooking spray. Divide the spinach mixture evenly among the 8 cups.

Bake the spinach cakes until set, about 20 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes. Loosen the edges with a knife and turn out onto a clean cutting board or large plate. Serve warm, sprinkled with more Parmesan, if desired.